Bridging Gaps
Day 2 of my convergence of Diana C.’s 50-day writing challenge with MDSHall’s prompts to employ dodoitsu and cinquain poetic forms
2. How does being endlessly understanding get in the way of true closeness?
My Responsive Cinquain
Tap keys Seen words move people Thoughts trigger reflexions Infiltrate irritate minds’ eye Opens
My Companion Note
When I awoke this morning and the first draft of the cinquain propelled me to grab my laptop, I had only the words “understanding” and “closeness” from Diana’s prompt in my mind and that a cinquain should evoke our senses (actually MDSHall writes that a cinquain should contain “intense physical imagery to communicate a mood or feeling.” Since our senses communicate and/or cause feelings, I think evoking the stimulation of various senses aptly describes as well).
Only after I typed the draft poem did I copy-paste the actual prompt. Grrrr. Hmmm. Doesn’t quite fit.
Glad that poetry and ambiguity suit one another.
Let’s make it fit better. So in the second line, I changed the word “touch” to “move.” I already had a nice wordsmithed double-entendre in the third line with “reflexions.” In the fourth line, I first changed “inspire” to “provoke” and then changed that to the “irritate” that you see now.
Now, I shall tackle Diana’s challenge head-on with a dodoitsu percolating in my mind since last night. We will go through the creative process together as the words have yet to fall where they will, as Joseph Lieungh might say, or as I might say, I have yet to catch the pinball on one flipper poised to hit the capture target that would trigger the multi-ball play and a chance at a high score.
First I wish to note the typically awesome Dianaesque style of this prompt. Understanding means both intellectually getting or accepting and so much in between.
intransitive verb. 1 : to have understanding : have the power of comprehension. 2 : to achieve a grasp of the nature, significance, or explanation of something. 3 : to believe or infer something to be the case. Source
Then what is the object of the understanding? A person? A concept? A fact?
As for closeness, literal distance or figurative? Would one use farther or further to describe the distance?
Ok, I feel my split screens converging.
The Dodoitsu Emerges
Maintain tender boundaries These allow into-me-see Interdependent bonds close Dependent repels
Companion Note
When one is too understanding and accepting of others' feelings at the expense of their own, this attempt at closeness inevitably sucks the life out of at least one partner and drives a wedge between the friends, lovers, or relatives.
Tree Langdon posted this neologism in a challenge a while back:
Autopologiser
How to know if you are an autopologiser: someone bumps into you in the street and you say sorry. You say it again when some arrogant fool pushes you aside in the elevator so that they can get out first. Maybe you even say it to your toast in the morning if you’ve burned it. Whatever the case, you say it so much it has lost all meaning.
I responded with:
My Tanka to the Innocent Autopologisers — The Codapologists
Codependency Lost self-awareness and worth Stop eggshell walking Set and defend boundaries Proudly assert your power
I published my day-1 in SYNERGY:
I intend to employ a strategy of spreading these among several pubs and see how that affects performance. This one I house with my purple poetic power princess :-).
Tagging some friends and fellow poets for participation in prompts and because I value your meaningful engagement: Jean Carfantan Carolyn F. Chryst, Ph.D. Esther George Joseph Lieungh Anthi Psomiadou Claire Kelly Stuart Englander Tree Langdon Holly Kellums Frank Ontario Melanie J. Keri Mangis Ane Cris Rita Duponty Jupiter Grant jules
In Rama I create with Lindsey’s breath winding my sails,